The Lore Behind the Lore
by Geminel
Summary: An unfinished series about the game SMITE, sorely outdated with the current version of the game but entertaining none the less. An updated re-boot of this series is currently underway! Please support this project by searching for Lore Behind the Lore on Patreon!
1. Chapter 1

**THE LORE BEHIND THE LORE-** _BIRTH OF THE ARENA_

The Arena of the Gods began, as many of the greatest innovations do, with a problem. For eons prior the Gods of mankind's many pantheons had watched over their creations. They preserved the order of the world and upheld their sacred duties to ensure that the many cycles which bound the great and complex Earth together were able to turn as they were so designed.

To ensure that the sun rose and set.

To promise that love is truly what gives life

To punish those who would forsake that which they have given

And to ensure that the single most important element in all of creation was treated accordingly. That the souls of those who have lived within the bounds of the mortal world can be judged, redeemed, reincarnated... The many supreme psychopomps had differing ideals as to what was the most effective method in bringing the mortal world to see the wonder of creation for what it was, but that was almost always the unerring goal.

Thus, we shall turn our attention to Hades. Sadly, the Lord of the Underworld had recently come to find himself awash in his own River Styx. Great wars had broken out across the mortal world, and worse than many which had come before them. A new trend had begun in the world of men, they were fighting their wars whilst they waved the banners of his fellow Gods against one another! This was a ghastly affront to each and every deity who could rightfully be called such, Hades held no doubt. Only the Gods themselves held the right to end the lives of men in their name. If they wished wars fought for them they commanded it! These mortals had begun to overstep their rightful place within the tapestry of creation. Such was the wise view of the God of Death.

Hades decided he was left with no option, and he ordered his three judges to cease in their eternal work whilst he concocted his designs as to how he might deal with this newest, most egregious sin. For a full thirteen days the never-ending waves of the River Styx roared atop themselves as Hades' rule held them from flowing to their final destinations. Instead, he focused his fullest attention and all his power on the creation of a new shard within the Underworld. A great field of desolation, the place where he would store all these heathen souls.

When his work was complete he directed his judges to send all those souls whom had died and killed whilst warring falsely under the names of Gods to be sent there, where they shall battle blindly for all eternity.

Though he shared little love for his heavenly family, Hades had great pride in his new creation. Thus he summoned Hermes to his Underworld and gave to him a message, that he should invite all the Gods of Olympus to come and witness the punishment Hades had wrought for those who slandered their names.

The first to arrive was Zeus, appearing within nearly the same second of Hermes' departure from The Gates of Cerberus. The God of Thunder materialized from a shattering bolt of lightning.

"What have you done Hades, to think that you can so manipulate the flow of the great River of Souls!?" Zeus roared in a display of anger which only the God of Gods himself were capable of. "This burden has been yours long enough that you should know better than to tamper with so much mortal life so frivolously!"

Hades scoffed, his brother's rage being a stale sight in his cold eyes after these many centuries.

"Look more closely, my brother" He said calmly as he strode onto the battlefield of his creation. "Watch these men. All of these mindless soldiers will battle one another from now until all of creation falls into dust, and no men are left to die. They will charge out onto the front lines of this battle and kill and die, and know nothing more than that pain ever again. For it is a pain that they abused in the most heinous of ways."

As he spoke, the dark form of the God of the Dead slipped through the lines of battle, his black aura dulled the faces of the armored men who savagely attacked one another, though they were oblivious to it. Neither did they flinch nor cry out when their dark overseer casually reached out his thin hand and drained a great sum of their soul's essence from them. They fell and died around his feet, and as they did they were returned to their spiritual essence so that they may await the opportunity to do so again. Hades' deathly smile widened, and he released a hollow, echoing laughter filled with hellish glee. "And you thought yourself so clever when you punished Sisyphus!"

Zeus' mighty form trembled with godly rage. To not only see his brother treat his Olympian duty with such disregard, but to mock him in the same breath!

"No, Hades!" He declared, raising his clenched fist proudly over his head where it began to crackle with furious energy. "I thought myself to be that which I am! I AM ZEUS, RULER OF OLYMPUS! AND FOR YOUR TREASON I SMITE THEE!"

A dull roar echoed from the chamber surrounding Hades' eternal battleground, growing to a deafening tremor in an instant. Zeus bore down his fist like a gavel, and a great bolt of lightning blasted clear through the layers of earth which separated the Heavens from the Underworld. It struck Hades as cleanly as if he were a thousand feet tall, and brought millions of tons of rock and debris down around him.

As the dust began to settle Zeus turned away, for while he knew he had not slain his brother he believed he had convinced him of the error of his ways. But... As he readied himself to return to his throne atop Mount Olympus, a strange sensation stung his shoulder. Looking back to investigate it's source he saw one of Hades' trapped souls standing alone, staring at him in awe with a slackened bow still humming softly as it hung in his hand. Reaching to his back Zeus pulled the man's small arrow from his own porcelain flesh and flicked it away with curious regard. Suddenly now he understood, he saw the potential of what Hades had created. These mindless soldiers would kill and die eternally, just as Hades had said... But they were not completely blind. Their fervor for battle in the name of the Gods had persisted even into Hades' new Hell. When the energies of Gods clashed here, they could see it...

Soon after, Zeus sought to right the damage he had caused. He called upon Hephaestus, The Grand Smith of the Gods, and commanded him to take the rubble left by his wrath and see that it be remade into a place truly worthy of Godly conflict. Hephaestus crafted the stone into bricks from which he built a pair of great temples opposite each other. He breathed life into the stone and sculpted it into the forms of the most hideous monsters ever to set foot, claw, or hoof on the planes of Earth. Cyclopes, wraiths... He created a great giant whose form was wreathed in flame, and placed it at the exact point which Hades had stood when Zeus' grand bolt struck him. Lastly he toiled over his masterwork... Two powerful Minotaurs; the ultimate symbols of Godly power gone awry, to act as the temple's guardians.

It was not long before many members of the Olympian pantheon began to make their way to Hades' Arena of the Gods; from all across the far reaches of Greece. They came to challenge one another in matters of honor. They wagered bets, and decided the whims of fate based on the outcomes of their contests, as Gods are so apt to do.

Zeus' lightning strike had opened the battleground to the skies above; and before long it was brimming with vegetation and creature life. Exposed to the world now, many new elements began to seep into the arena. The Sun rose overhead and solemnly watched the battles it held. Strong winds echoed between the temple walls and carried the scent of blood and combat to far away places; and the trees became populated by ravens...

Now the many deities of the world have begun discover Hades' "Arena of the Gods", and they too are seeking to prove their prowess. To display their cunning. To test their skill in battle against those who could be called peers, and to take victory! And all the glory that comes with it!


	2. Chapter 2

**LORE BEHIND THE LORE- **_Ch.2: Patriarchs_

_"What would you have me do Hades?! Release the Titans; that they might pluck it from your Underworld and carry it elsewhere? As though there were even a means to do so without destroying the very resource which makes it possible!" The increasingly-familiar sound of Zeus's booming voice echoed out into the howling vast reaches of The Underworld beyond the bounds of the Arena of the Gods._

"Quiet yourself, good brother" Hades hissed, motioning for Zeus to calm. He had apparently struck quite a nerve. "You'll waken the dead."

The pair stood together within one of the Arena's two great temples. Until just a moment ago they had been conversing peacefully whilst they watched the scene down field. There, Artemis was heatedly engaged in her latest training session amidst the eternal battleground's front-lines... Her third of the day. The Arena had already hosted many glorious battles between the Olympian deities since the day when Hephaestus declared his designs for it complete, and with each one Hades had grown more and more displeased.

Giving his temper a moment to cool, Zeus continued at a more rational tone. "It is simply the fact of what has come to pass, brother. You have seen how the promise of good sport has lifted the hearts of your fellow gods. You would be doing yourself and all of us a cruel disservice were you to restrict us from it now."

Hades; though hardly the sort to be swayed by sentiment, understood well enough that it was indeed the way of his Olympian kin to settle disputes through matters of sport or contest. That did not give him any less cause to feel conflicted.

His mostly self-relegated isolation before the invention of the Arena of the Gods had not been entirely pleasant, but he had considered it a necessary element of the task which the Fates had deigned him with. He was Death; and none, be they god or man, should take the crossing of those borders wherein lied the Land of Death lightly. Yet, now he had great hosts of Mount Olympus' finest coming and going as regularly as the sun rose and set... Moreso even! He had begun to spite The Arena for all the intrusion it brought him. Though he could not argue that to deny The Arena from Olympus now would surely turn the resentment of the other Greek gods against him, stronger even than ever before.

"Simply know that this discussion has not ended here." Hades concluded, and returned his attention back to the front lines of the eternal battlefield; where Artemis was skillfully whittling down her 'sparring partner'.

Artemis had, in fact, imported her own training dummy of sorts. She had captured a burly manticore decades ago during a particularly exciting hunt. It was still young then, and after years under her care it had become a creature with strength and toughness enough to withstand even the mightiest of godly blows.

Indeed. the manticore was fast growing legendary for it's ability to take a beating. Though the gods of Olympus were never cruel enough to intentionally try to slay Artemis' beloved pet there had been a number of times in the past during which it was gravely wounded to such a degree that many, even Hades himself, had assumed it to be taking it's final breaths. Yet somehow the resilient beast was to be found hopping around ready to 'play' by the next morn.

It's scorpion-like tail, nearly twice as large most of it's kind, whipped around ferociously and broke more than a dozen of Artemis' arrows off it's bulky hide. Though in truth that hardly did much to alter the ever-growing illusion that the creature was somehow slowly incorporating hedgehog spines into it's repituare of walking zoology. It shook it's great mane and buffeted it's dragon-like wings. The long minutes of being continuously prodded by Artemis' arrows had finally driven the beast to begin fighting back.

The manticore charged forward with a deafening roar, battering rows of swordsmen aside in the process. For all the power and ferocity the beast had, in Artemis' eyes all she could see was her excitable pet wanting to play Tackle. She fired off a pair of arrows as she turned, one for each step of the motion, and intended to start strafing the giant monster until it gave up on chasing. Though, as her view turned forward to match her stride it unexpectedly met the cold, unseeing face of one of the eternal battle's footmen. She stumbled over him, losing barely a second's worth of momentum.

Unfortunately, one second was all the manticore, swift for all it's massive size, needed to pounce on her. The huge lion's maw clamped down on her lean arm and it's massive form bore her to the ground.

While the beast was amazingly strong, perhaps one of the strongest of it's kind, it stood no hope of injuring Artemis. Frail though she may appear she was still Zeus' daughter; and a goddess of Olympus. The biting pressure of the lion's jaws was enough, though, to cause her to drop her precious bow. Agitated, she slapped at the gargantuan monstrosity's face with her free hand repeatedly. "NO! Bad Thorn! Get off me!"

Just as the manticore's lioneqse jaw began to loosen from her arm a new voice filled the Arena; one that none of the deities there recognized. It was strong, like Zeus', but gritted and worn as if from countless years of drinking something akin to mild acid...

**"FOR ASGARD!"**

Looking upward the three gathered members of Olympus saw the shadow of a massive steed, though it's legs numbered twice as many as any horse ever seen in Greece before. It's body was outlined by the shimmering sun passed high overhead, propelled by a great leap. The gallant steed was jumping the miles-wide chasm which housed the Arena of the Gods as easily as a mustang hops a shallow ditch! As it did figure of a man, a huge man; with a shimmering spear clutched in his grasp, began to plummet from it's back directly toward them.

A booming crash pushed trees a-sway and sent ravens flocking and crying in every direction when the powerful bearded figure landed squarely on the manticore's bulky torso. The resounding shockwave could be felt even by the two brothers still standing many meters away within the temple. The impact of this powerful being crushed the manticore with the blood-wrenching crackle of many, many bones breaking in unison; and the stone beneath it splintered out for several feet.

Artemis rolled backward swiftly, collecting her bow from the ground as she tucked and readying it in a kneeling stance as she recovered. Faster then the beating of a hummingbird's wing, the Goddess of the Wild had a shaft notched and aimed directly at the intruder's one good eye.

"In need of some assistance, lass?" The burly newcomer bellowed, booming with a hearty laugh.

"Do you know who you're addressing, barbarian?" Artemis replied coldly. She loosed her string, and her missile flew with deadly intent. It's line was as sure and steady as the goddess' hands which hand launched it, and it made directly for it's target. That is, until it was blasted aside by a spark of lightning from her father's fingertips. In the commotion she had not been aware of his swift approach.

"Artemis, take your pet to go recover." His tone was commanding, stern, but measured. Standing before him Zeus saw a figure who held the stance and stature of a leader, much like himself. Whatever had brought this unannounced visitor to the Arena, Zeus felt it was his duty to be the first to know of it.

Once the leather-clad figure stepped down from the manticore's spine Artemis easily hoisted her thousand-pound lapdog over her supple shoulders; from where it let out the sort of grotesque groan capable only by those creatures which are enduring the unique agony of attempting to return one's innards to their proper locations. As she made her departure it was marked with a stream of whispered curses, not the least of which included 'buffoon', 'unwashed', and 'primitive'. Shaking his head, Zeus turned his attention back to the matter at hand.

"I bid you greetings, outsider. It can be seen by both action and appearance you are unquestionably one whom men would know as a god, but your face is new to me. I am Zeus, God of Thunder and lord above all who call Olympus home. What are you called, and what brings you to this place?"

"I am Odin, The All-Father of the Aesir and Ruler of Asgard! ...And if ye can't tell, I'm here for the brawl!"

Zeus paused a long moment as he considered this newest revelation. Then laughed openly. He peered back over his shoulder to witness his brother Hades, whose shoulders now sunk and head hung in defeat. They both knew what was about to occur. The Arena was about to become Olympus', and chiefly Zeus', newest tool of diplomacy. Any objections Hades may have had to the amount of traffic it had brought to his Underworld were certain to fall on deaf ears now.

His smile as wide as a Cheshire cat, Zeus extended his hand to welcome the first inter-pantheon deity to grace the unending battle of The Arena of the Gods.


	3. Chapter 3

**LORE BEHIND THE LORE- **_Ch.3: Patriarchs II_

In the days of Odin's first arrival to The Arena of the Gods it was still only a shadow of what it would soon become. The trees amidst the battlefield grew wildly where ever their roots had placed them. The curse which Hades had cast on the infinitely recycling legions of the eternal battle's soldiers only caused them to appear at the edges of the vast field and charge into it's center where the never-ending conflict of those-who-can-see-only-enemies roared on. It was there that the fathers of two houses: Zeus; God of Thunder, and Odin; The All-Father were discovering that their newly founded relationship brought with it a most curious conundrum.

"Ye're telling me this is The Underworld?" Odin questioned with bewilderment. His keen eye scanning the arena grounds. "That's the damndest thing I've ever heard. These men are obviously warriors, they belong in Valhalla!"

Generally, Zeus did not respond well when he believed others to be questioning the 'natural order' of things; that being the order which he and his fellow Olympians dictated; but the appearance of a hither-to unheard of god was quite obviously an unprecedented occurrence. For this reason he pressed himself to stay his temper and keep his efforts focused on diplomacy. "Honored Ruler of Asgard" the Norse god's homeland twisted a heavy accent from Zeus' unaccustomed tongue "In truth I bare no knowledge of this 'Va-lah-hah' of which thy speak, but know thee now that the manner in which my sibling chooses to sort his yield is not thy concern."

"HIS yield?!" Bellowed the All-Father. "It is Hel who commands The Underworld! It was I who gave her the lands of Niflheim and she knows that noble fighters like these come to MY kingdom, not hers!"

"Neeflihime? Hell?" replied Zeus. "Goodly Odin I have commanded over all the known lands for centuries, and now you appear spouting strange words which have no meaning in my ears!"

Odin paused, lowering his head in a moment of quiet contemplation. His thick fingers combed their way though his massive grey mead-stained beard as the first pieces of a discomforting new puzzle began to come together in his mind. "What's the best vantage point in the land?"

"My palace, atop the highest peak of Mount Olympus, of course" Zeus replied plainly. In his mind this fact was thought to be one of the most commonly known among men and gods alike.

"I'm gonna hazard a guess that ye haven't been home in a day or two, eh?" deduced Odin. "I think it's time ye invited me over for a tour."

* * *

The sun had just begun to set behind the distant western hills as Zeus arrived at the gates of his palace of clouds, with Odin not far behind on his mighty steed Sleipnir. He was greeted there by a more-frantic-than-usual Hermes. The Messenger of the Gods had apparently just received some very important news.

"Zeus, Zeus!" Hermes waved his stick-thin arms weirdly as he floated closer on his winged sandals. "Strangers have come to the land! Lord Helios claims that a massive ship carved from gold sailed beside The Chariot of the Sun as he towed it through the sky this day! He says that a golden man who appeared like a hawk flew from it as he passed near Olympus and appeared to be coming this way!"

Odin nodded in understanding as he approached. "As I had begun to suspect. Something strange is happening in Midgard. Come, Thunder God. I assume you have a partition from which to watch over your lands?"

With due haste the pair of great leaders passed through the massive antechamber of Zeus' palace. The walls, pillars and high ceilings surrounding them were carved from the purest white clouds and inlaid with shimmering gold. The whole of the structure shone as though it were the most polished of marble. Odin directed Zeus to guide him to the northernmost overlook which the palace offered, and it was there that Zeus first witnessed something which, to him, was completely beyond explanation.

Once, not more than a couple days prior, Zeus had been able to look out from this parapet and see all of Greece laid out before him. He was able to do the same now, but there was something new beyond it.

While not minutes prior it had seemed to the God of Gods that all of creation, all life and all that there was to know existed within the bounds of his kingdom; he saw now new lands. Lands which stretched out further than even his great sight could behold. Before mighty Zeus, for the first time in his existence, all of the many lands of men were laid out for him to view. His face became a visage of shock and confusion.

Stepping solemnly behind him Odin placed a strong hand on Zeus' back. "Now you see." He said. "I was seated on my throne in Asgard when it occurred. Before my very eye I saw Midgard explode in size. Masses of land appeared around it as if they had existed there since the beginning of time. This was what brought me to seek your arena, for when I found such mighty figures as yourself and your kin engaged in battle I had believed it to be somehow related. Though it appears now that was not the case..."

Odin's sturdy shoulders slumped, and he rubbed at his forehead as he struggled to make sense of what he knew and what he had seen, turning to face Zeus. "I gave my eye for knowledge, Olympian. I was told I would know everything which ever will be, or ever has been. Yet this is something unexpected. These vast lands which have appeared from the mists, yours among them, have no place is my memories of either past or future. I am at a loss as to what to make of this."

Zeus gazed out over the Earth. To the north were many green grasslands like his own, but beyond them the land turned white, and he could see that much of it was snow-covered. Snow was something Greece only saw on it's highest mountain tops. "That is Midgard, at least as much of it as I remember creating" Odin pointed out to him.

Far to the west Zeus could see entire nations easily the size of his homeland, though they were made of sand. He could not understand how such vast spaces of the substance could exist with no seaside or river to cause them.

A new ocean extended to the east, and beyond it were what seemed to be an infinite stretch lands which, before now, had never existed. Zeus turned away from the sight, his mind hardly able to comprehend it any longer. He paced his way quietly toward his throne and slumped into it. Odin followed suit, moving to warm his chilled bones on the heat of the giant brazier which burned in the center of the chamber.

"What is it?" Zeus whispered beneath his breath.

"The world."

These words were voiced by neither Zeus nor Odin. They came instead from the overlook the pair had just departed. Standing there now was a figure much like the one which Hermes has described to them only a short time earlier. Ra, The Sun God, had arrived.

"I have looked down over it through the course of the day. There are cities on those vast continents, civilizations unlike any I have seen before. I have looked down on you both, as well, and have heard your words. I am Ra, father and pharaoh to the many gods of Egypt, and I am The Sun."

"Preposterous!" Boomed Zeus, who's famed temper was beginning to get the better of him in the face of so much overwhelming trauma to his long-held understanding of reality. "Helios rides The Chariot of the Sun to light the mortal world!"

"Yes, I met him. We had an enlightening conversation about child-rearing. Regardless, it does not alter what I am. Indeed, it only makes it more obvious to me that this new Earth is something which is of concern to us all."

As he sat slumped in his throne the Father of Olympus recalled in his mind's eye the sight of the Earth, in all it's splendor, and it frightened him in such a way as he had never known before. His world, his Greece, which he had ruled exclusively and without question for so long now seemed to be just a tiny spec within something so much larger.

What else might exist now to which he was so totally oblivious? Who was to know what other gods could be out there at this very moment? Who could even say for certain that they weren't already traveling straight for his beloved home...


	4. Chapter 4

**LORE BEHIND THE LORE- **_Ch.4: Answers to the East_

A bone-chilling wind swept across glistening mountain peaks; whistling through cavernous caves and lifting up blinding drifts of loose snow which raced across long miles of the most impassible terrain on Earth. These were the mountain ranges known as the Himalayas, and atop one of the tallest of them sat one of the smallest of men. Vamana, the Fifth Avatar of Vishnu, had spent the greater part of the morning and midday there sitting in still and silent meditation. He was facing out toward the north, over the vast fields and the rolling hills of China; though his eyes were shut and his mind was far away from his senses.

Through his meditations Vamana had endured to commune with the spirit and knowledge of the creator god whose essence he represented. From the centers of his heart and his spirit he asked for guidance in understanding what was before him. Through Vishnu, Vamana also sought the knowledge of the other Trimurti members: Shiva and Brahma. He guided his thoughts through the many questions which the sudden appearance of this new northern nation brought to him. Where had it come from? What existed there? Would it threaten his beloved India?

To each of these and many more questions he received the same response. His mind would feel calmed, and whispers from the unseen reaches of his deepest thoughts would bubble up to quietly remind him of the first, simplest, and at the same time most complex tenant of his faith; that all is one. While the shadows of the mountains shifted around him through the passage of the day he maintained perfect stillness and sought to understand what this ancient piece of wisdom could mean when applied to this puzzling new development.

It was not until dusk that he was shaken from his contemplation. He would have carried no qualms against the idea of peacefully spending the entire night sat on the mountain top, but his eyes quickly snapped open when sounds of commotion and cries of fear began to echo their way up the slopes. The bantam protector rose to his feet, took up his wooden umbrella from the snow, and peered East across the peaks.

There he saw a great azure serpent coiling and darting across the sky. As he watched, the scaled god buffeted the sky and dove sharply. Vamana's eyes traced the path of the dragon's decent, and through that he was able to spot the focus of it's attention. A caravan of monks from a nearby monastery were travelling north through the mountain passes, and had somehow managed to raise the ire of this mighty Dragon King.

Ao Kuang pulled out of his dive barely a foot above the wagons, his long body slithering over the convoy below in a roaring display of power. As he passed the lead cart he pulled up sharply and flicked his tail behind him, churning up a powerful gust which toppled the vehicle and sent it's horses off in a panic. His body coiled over itself in the air, and before the vicars below could even recover from his first pass he was diving overhead again, pushing gale-force winds in his wake which caused men to go tumbling in all directions. The proud storm god let out an uproarious laugh filled with malicious glee as he hovered overhead and watched the men scream and scramble in search of cover like scared ants.

"You dare attempt to cross into my homeland without paying tribute to the Jade Emperor?!" boomed the Dragon God from his high perch. "Turn back now little men, unless you desire to learn the full extent of my fury!"

"Who are you calling little?" echoed Vamana's voice from a short distance away. He was approaching at an amazing swiftness, his tiny bare feet tearing across mountain slopes as easily as a child plays hopscotch. A giant cloud of powdery snow blew up behind him as he sped onto the scene, and he skidded to a stop near the caravan's center to bravely confront The Dragon King of the Eastern Seas.

Ao Kuang peered down at the half-sized man who had just crossed a dozen leagues in a handful of seconds. He lowered his head, rubbing his old eyes with clawed hands and blinking a few times to assure himself he was seeing clearly. Once more the serpentine king's laughter bounced off the mountainsides, doubly as strong as before. "Oh-ho-ho-ho! Indeed it would appear I had spoken too soon. Who are you, tiny being, that you would think it wise to parley with the most powerful of the four Dragon Gods? Did you not see the many, twice your stature, who were running for their lives not seconds ago?"

"I believe you allow appearances to deceive you too easily, oh powerful sea lord." Vamana said humbly. His stance was relaxed; spinning his umbrella lazily as it sat on his shoulder. He was familiar with prideful minds such as this, he knew from what he had seen already that a humbling lesson was just the cure for this Dragon God's temper. "Perhaps it is because your nature is to look down on everything from high above, but you apparently cannot see that there is as much strength in any of those men as there is in you, or I. Even if they are not fully aware of it themselves..."

"You think to belittle me so greatly, tiny man, to compare my power with that of measly mortal pests?! My winds could blast you a thousand miles with only a breath!" Ao Kuang coiled his body in the air and bolted downward with a snarl, his great form dropping at terminal velocity toward the small god who might speak of him so. His bearded maw snapped to a halt in front of Vamana's face, the Dragon God's eyes thinning into a scowl.

Vamana's face grew a slow, widening smile. He dropped his umbrella from his shoulder and stuck it in the deep snow next to him, leaning on it with a nonchalance tailored to taunt the temperamental god. "Then prove it. Blow over this cart." He pointed his thumb at the caravan car behind him, half-stuck in the snow from having been halted so long.

"The arrogance! To not only challenge ME, but to such a childish task! So be it, you've none but yourself to blame for the storm you have called forth!" Ao's mighty neck lurched backwards. His fanged jaws opened wide as he inhaled sharply, and he held a long breath as he stared down at Vamana with vindictiveness. With an ear-shattering roar that shook avalanches from distant peaks he lunged forward at Vishnu's avatar and spat a violent, relentless tempest of winds from his mouth.

Vamana steadied himself during the dragon's mighty gasp. He planted his bare feet firmly in the tundra beneath him, centered his weight low and placed his umbrella open in front of him. When the winds came, he erupted in size. His body, as well as his legendarily strong parasol, grew so suddenly and so large that he became an instant wall against the gale-force assault. His now-gigantic bare feet dug into the icy landscape as he held himself firmly in place. Behind him layers of snow, ice, earth and mountainside blew away, but Vamana did not budge an inch from his place.

The Dragon God's mighty breath subsided and he realized what had happened. Vamana had managed to stay his winds from not only the cart which had been his challenge, but the whole of the caravan. He roared out in wicked anger. "You! You cheat! Impudent, deceptive child-man!"

Vamana uncurled himself from behind his umbrella, doubling in size again as he stood. With a swift hand he reached down and grabbed up Ao Kuang as if he were a tiny caterpillar. He held the dragon with just enough force to keep him still as he spoke with a soothing, calm tone.

"No, Dragon King, I have not cheated. You simply failed to realize that something small is not always something weak. Man, god, and nature alike... In knowing the dharma, I acknowledge that all these things are equal. The embodiment we observe is not more than a figment of perception."

Vamana paused then, and a look of sudden realization washed over his features. He looked down at the travelling monk's carts, and something in his own words forced him to recall them in his mind. A key had turned in Vamana's mind. "Listen," he requested, loosening his grip and letting Ao free. "It would be ignorant of us not to see that these are turbulent days. We need not discover ourselves as enemies on the same evening that we discover ourselves as neighbors."

Ao Kuang hovered up to meet Vamana at eye level. Offended as he felt, he found the Hindu paragon's request for peace to be difficult to deny. "What would you propose, then?" he spat harshly. "Mortals have been crossing our borders from your lands in greater numbers each passing day since it's sudden appearance."

Vamana nodded in understanding, his suspicions had already led him to believe that to be true. "Go to your allies, call them together so that we can all meet peacefully. I believe I have found the answers to a great many of the questions which have risen as of late."

Ao Kuang grumbled irritably, and dipped his head in a lazy imitation of a bow. "For the sake of not starting a war I suppose I should do as you say. You and I will have a great much to... discuss in the future though, I assure you." The Dragon King of the Eastern Sea pulled back his lips in one final, threatening snarl before he turned and flew away to his home.

As Vamana descended back to his normal size he was greeted by the cheers of the returning monks. Some started to work reclaiming what they could from the mess of goods while a handful of the highest ranking among them came to give their thanks. "These passes are treacherous enough without being attacked by angry dragons! Is there anything we might offer you for protecting us?"

Vamana requested only a piece of parchment and an inkwell. As the caravan of monks made camp for the night he wrote out what had occurred, and what he had learned. When he was finished he stood, walked to the campfire the monks has prepared and; with a quiet chant, tossed the parchment into the flame and strode away.


	5. Chapter 5

**LORE BEHIND THE LORE- **_Ch.5: Warriors_

"I told ye she ne'er misses" Odin boasted, spinning Gungnir over his arm in a flashy display as he strode toward the sidelines of the Arena of the Gods. There Zeus was nursing the wound which Odin had inflicted on him.

"You had failed to mention the sting she bears to match her precision." retorted the Thunder God with as much grace as his wounded pride could allow him. "Though, it would seem the slayer whom accompanied our Egyptian peer can claim much the same of himself; All-Father." Quipped Zeus, unwilling to let Odin's gloating slip by without pointing out that they were each sharing in the bitter taste of defeat.

After the initial meeting of the three leaders it had been decided that a great contest should be held in commemoration, and many of the gods from Asgard and Egypt had traveled to the arena to participate. Most had already been defeated, and much of the arena's perimeter was now lined with gods of every land. Many were meeting for the first time. Most were excitedly watching the final three contestants of the day's free-for-all.

"Bah, I let meself get caught up in the fun'a taking apart all them scrawny bags ye call soldiers out there. Sneaky beast got behind me somehow." Odin admitted as moved to share Zeus' view of the field. From there he scanned the fray for Anhur, the one who had taken him out of the day's event. "He's a keen warrior, no doubts there." Odin continued once he had spotted the golden-maned patron of war darting between rows of trees. "We've got a few of them where I come from too, though... and it looks like he'll be discovering that shortly."

As if on queue, an explosion of golden sparks erupted on the far side of the Arena of the Gods. The many deities assembled around the edge of the arena whooped and cheered as Odin's son, Thor, propelled himself into the air. His cherished Mjolnir humming steadily as the air-splitting speed of it's rapidly spinning head kept the hammer's heroic owner hovering high above.

"Prepare yourself, cat!" Thor's voice echoed off the arena grounds. From his vantage he had been able to spot Anhur, who was now tucked behind away behind a large laid-stone wall; spear held to his chest at the ready. "Your triumph over my forebearer shall be repaid!" promised Thor, and he flung his arm forward; breaking the cyclic force of Mjolnir's spin. Redirecting that force, and himself, directly toward Anhur.

"Not repaid! REPEATED!" The lion-headed Slayer God roared triumphantly as he shot out from behind his cover. His burly form contracted on itself like a jungle cat about to pounce, and he channeled all his mighty strength into his arm. Anhur heaved his gem-adorned spear with such speed and ferocity that it nearly resembled one of Zeus' bolts.

The spear's tip struck Mjolnir right in the midpoint of Thor's decent. The enchanted hammer knocked it away cleanly enough; but the sheer momentum of it was enough to push Thor's arm aside. The blow altered his trajectory, forcing him to crash awkwardly into the ornate stonework which Anhur had been previously hiding behind. The thunderous impact shot up a cloud of dust and debris that obscured the two contenders from both the crowd, and each other.

There was a long pause as the echoes of falling bricks began to settle. Slowly, they were replaced by the quiet gasps and murmurs of the assembled gods in awe of the spectacle.

The hushed tension lasted only a moment before a lion's roar broke the stillness. Anhur lept from the dust cloud; spear held in his burly, clawed hand once more. Quickly, he spun and threw it back into the center of the blinding plume, then instantly plucked another from the floating particles and did the same. His wild fury twisting his godly powers to produce more and more of the deadly, razor-tipped weapons from the dust; not one of which stayed in his hand for more than a twinkling of a second. Each spear Anhur threw could be seen an instant later by the crowd... as it whirled uncontrolled from the other side of the brown fog.

The massive swell of floating dirt twisted and warped, churning and spinning inward on itself until it became a cyclone; which rose and dispersed into the winds. Where it's center had been was Thor, spinning like a top with Mjolnir extended in his outstretched arms. Anhur's spears were being knocked away by the hammer's head with each turn, Thor's footwork and pacing matching the lion god's assault perfectly.

As the two became aware of their stalemate they both came to a swift halt. The two contenders faced one another over the pile of rubble their battle had created; weapons held high and at the ready. Both appeared physically exhausted from their efforts.

"Yield, feline! You have fought with honor today, now yield before I am forced to show you the fate that so many Jotuns have known before you!"

"Hah!" scoffed Anhur, his gaze narrowing on the protector of Midgard. "Don't insult my pride..." He raised his spear, studying, looking for the angle that Thor couldn't block.

"Ah, Odin..." Zeus casually whispered on the sidelines, smirking to his fellow patriarch as a glint of steel caught the corner of his eye. "Did I not mention we have our own caste of warriors in Greece as well? In fact, there are some who call them the finest ever bred..."

There was a sharp rattling, like a thousand metal beams being flung at each other. Anhur had spotted his mark. His arm reached back as far as his muscles would allow, readying a shot he was certain would bring the Asgardian to his knees. Then he was caught. His wrist suddenly wrapped by a burning iron chain. It tightened around his wrist and seared into his fur and flesh. He roared in agony, turning in the direction it had come from to see Ares.

"...We just call them Spartans."

Thor turned to face the final member of the battle, who had been lying in wait for the moment to strike. As soon as he did Ares threw a second chain from his other hand; which coiled itself around Thor's torso and sealed itself to his armor. Ares brought the two chains together in his grasp, and heaved with all his godly might. "I AM THE ONLY VICTOR IN WAR!" Cried the bloodthirsty Olympian as the searing links pulled tight, and the two gods attached to them were flung from their feet. Ares spun the defeated pair in a full circle before releasing his chains and sending the duo flying back into what remained of the wall which had been the centerpiece of the conflict. The two had barely finished bouncing off it before Ares produced his shield from his back and his spiked blade from his hip, charging for the kill.

"I Yield!" Shouted Thor and Anhur in unison, knowing they were too beaten now to fend off the God of War's assault. They held out their arms in surrender as they stood, nodding a begrudging recognition to the victor of the first inter-pantheon game.

Meanwhile; high above on the very edges of the chasm which housed the Arena of the Gods stood a solitary figure, watching over the events with great interest. His lush long beard swayed in the whistling winds as he leaned against his grand, curved, dragon-headed guandao.

"An interesting place," the proud figure thought aloud "though, it seems to favor such brutal tactics..."


	6. Chapter 6

**LORE BEHIND THE LORE- **_Ch.6: Emissaries_

"I place my trust in you with this critical task, Most Loyal One." The Jade Emperor had said to him. "There are too many unanswered questions in all of it. These mysterious lands could be an opportunity to begin a grand age of trade and wealth for China; or they could be the fore-bearers of war unlike anything these heavens have ever known. It depends on you, Guan Yu, to discover whether this enigmatic new world will know our lands for it's spice, or for it's steel."

The red-faced saint reflected on those words now, as he peered down into a great chasm of darkness. At it's center he could see the twin temples of the Arena of the Gods. The many fires which lit the field flickered like beacons against the sheer blackness that surrounded it for miles on all sides. The arena itself almost seemed to float within the lightless Underworld which housed it. He was certain that the knowledge he had been charged with acquiring would be found there.

Guan Yu had no way of knowing how far down the pit before him actually extended. The kingdom of Hades seemed as though it were covered by a thick black fog, which obfuscated all but the arena from above. The terrain seemed to offer no other options for decent, though. The chasm encircled the arena equally on all sides, and the broken ground of it's edges bore no slope.

The Saintly Emperor considered this situation, combing his fingers thoughtfully through his immaculate beard. Once Guan Yu had concluded that no other path lay between him and his honorable goal, he did not hesitate another instant. He lept.

Down, down plunged the divine protector; throwing himself willingly into the Underworld for the sake of his mission. Cold, howling winds rushed up to welcome him as he fell, screaming in his ear with a sound that he had only ever heard in battle; from those men who die in the most gruesome of ways. Guan Yu tightened his grip on the Green Dragon Crescent Blade, taking a final look up at the night's sky before it vanished. He passed through a churning black cloud that hung over the Underworld, and a second later his feet struck solid ground.

It was a long, quiet moment as Guan Yu's perception slowly shifted to adapt to the sheer-black world he had entered. He could hear soft, pained groans, and the quiet shuffling of feet against stone off in the distance in every direction. The air was dank, and a rancid odor overtook Guan Yu's senses. Off in the distance he could make out the glint of the perimeter of the Arena of the Gods. It's many braziers shone the only source of light that existed now.

He used that glimmering light to gain what vision he could of his surroundings. As he did Guan Yu discovered the origin of the rotten scent assailing his nostrils. All around him, for as far as his shrouded sight allowed him to see, scores of corpses littered the otherwise-barren landscape. Many large piles of dead randomly dotted the flat stone floor, and many more bodies lay scattered between them. Guan Yu choked down a gasp of shocked revulsion, not having thought a sight such as this could ever have existed.

"Unjudged." The word rang in his ear. Guan Yu took up his guan dao in both hands, seeking it's source.

"Unjudged." The word came again. Then he felt something grip his leg. His red face took on a horrified expression as he looked down to realize that the nearest of the bodies was clutching at his ankle, gazing up at him with empty, dead eyes. "Unjudged." it said again in a breathless moan.

"Unwelcomed." he heard from somewhere not far behind him. "Unjudged!" came another voice from one of the corpse piles, the mass of which started to tremor with movement as two bodies lifted themselves from it and stood to gaze at Guan Yu. "Intruder." They groaned in unison.

Sounds of movement started to rise from every direction, and the many still-dead slowly came to their feet, the taunting chants growing louder with each one. As each of them rose they would sway, back and forth, shuffling and circling around the Chinese ancestor as they sputtered their warnings of trespass. Soon hundreds of rambling dead surrounded Guan Yu completely. The closest of them tilted it's head, it's lifeless face pulling upward into a macabre mockery of a smile. "The gatekeeper is coming."

Guan Yu resisted his urges to cleave the grim messenger in half. He wanted to escape this nightmarish place, and to carve a path to the arena which was his goal. But, these damned souls had not made any attempts to attack him, and to strike out against them would be a great wrongdoing. He was certain that any attempt to explain his purpose to these mindless puppets would be foolish, as well.

The sea of dead parted to his side, opening a passage that extended beyond the range of his vision. Many of the walking corpses shuffled backward, opening the space around Guan Yu, and silencing their chants. From the gap came a shimmering of six glowing red orbs, floating against the blackness. As the mass which carried them moved forward into view the Saint of War came to discover that the six orbs were, in fact, three sets of eyes... One for each head of the great beast Cerberus.

The massive canine, as large as any dragon Guan Yu had heard of in legends, stomped forward on paws that shook the ground. Each of the three heads stared viciously at the Saintly Emperor, growling and slobbering. The hulking creature pulled back it's many long ears as it hunched down on it's front legs, lowering all three of it's heads to face Guan Yu at eye-level. Snarling, Cerberus lunged.

The Gatekeeper of the Underworld could have never predicted Guan Yu's speed and power. As it's leftmost head lashed out with massive, razor-toothed jaws the legendary General lept backwards, striking the dog-faced creature cleanly. Jumping again above the right-side head as it tried to overcome him, and landing on top of it with another deft blow. Finally he launched himself from the creature's cranium and brought down his treasured weapon on Cerberus' central head. The three strikes combined knocked the great beast back before it even knew what had happened.

Cerberus raised up it's three heads and howled in pain, a deafening, piercing sound that echoed off the cavernous floors and ceilings of the Underworld for miles in every direction. Then the beast's massive body slumped over, thundering to the ground as it fell unconscious.

Guan Yu stepped back calmly as the short conflict ended, glancing back and forth at the wall of dead souls who still stood watching. Murmuring now; whispering frightened words between themselves. The forest of bodies began to thin slowly, the walking dead shuffling backwards into the darkness. After a moment the divine protector found himself alone, with nothing but the black void of the Underworld and the far off glimmer of his quest's completion. The victorious ancestor took his first step unhindered toward the Arena of the Gods...

Or so he thought. A dark voice boomed up from all around him.

"NEITHER MAN NOR GOD TRESPASS INTO MY KINGDOM UNBIDDEN."


End file.
